January 22, 2011

William Bendix Sings and Tells Famous Pirate Stories / KUSF leaves the airwaves

Yes, that wicked ol' audio pirate and lovable movie and TV guy William Bendix was a terror of the high seas. Perhaps it's because I just watched him in 'Lifeboat' the other night that I pulled this out this week to play it, or something in the connection of sea salt and being snowed-in for days at a time lately that brought this on. In any case, it's a very enjoyable kid's record from 1959, which was sealed when I bought it and it was years before I even had the heart to open it up and play it.

From the liner notes: "Here's the man you know and love, William Bendix. You've seen him on television in 'The Life of Riley' and 'Overland Trail' as well as on many other programs.

Singing and telling you these wonderful pirate stories is easy for Mr. Bendix ... he knows them well and enjoys telling you about them.

Bill Bendix started as a bat boy for the New York Giants. Bill was born and raised on Third Avenue in New York City. Having finally decided he wasn't a baseball player, he went to work as a grocery store clerk on his beloved Third Avenue. When he became store-manager he married his childhood sweetheart. The store he was managing had to close, and that's when Bill became a singing waiter and finally an actor.

This long playing record was made both for yourself and his grandchild who is just your age."

Well, that's sweet. I didn't know that he and I shared the exact same life story. Uncanny. Anyhoo, the script is by Sid and Helen Frank, words and music: Sid Frank and Judy Stein, arranged and produced by Ralph Stein, "audio-mixologist": Gene Sayet, with the Cricketone Chorus and Orchestra and (an enormous amount of) sound effects by Myst-A-Rama!

Breaking news from San Francisco- KUSF, the only non-commercial radio station actually based in SF (there are several others still operating in the listening area, thank goodness) has been pulled off of the air, and converted to an online-only station. The University of San Francisco decided to sell off the far-left-of-the-dial airspace for a reported $3.7 million. Sad news to someone who has played and DJ'd there many times, not to mention listening in.

Insider Stephen Abbate says, "...Talk in some news reports about the alleged 'new improved online' KUSF having the same content and/or programming is misinformation and deception: the truth being we were completely shut down, no one at USF has a clue how or when the future digital station will be functional, and a shuffling ipod belonging to someone in the business office is what you hear on the internet stream now."